What is the way to understand "ergative verbs"?


I am confused with "paired ergative verbs" and "unpaired ergative verbs".




  1. He knocked the vase off the table and it broke.


    Is [broke] in this sentence a paired ergative verb, because we can make the transitive counterpart as "He broke the vase"?




  2. He died with his boots on, like any good cowboy.


    Then, is [died] in this sentence an unpaired ergative verb, because we can't make any other counterpart?




  3. The black horse ran faster than the other ones.


    Now, what kind of verb is this [ran]? Is this sentence below correct? "He ran the black horse." If correct, is the verb [ran] also a paired ergative verb?




  4. As I knew, the verb [die] and [run] are intransitive verbs. What is different between an "ergative verb" and "intransitive verb"? I mean, is there a method to divide the verbs?






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